Forty seeds

So I'm starting my selective breeding experiment with forty seeds which I purchased off Trade-Me a week ago. Hopefully they were selected from nice big fruit. I own to experiencing a few doubts that forty plants will give sufficient variation to select from in the first generation. Quite probably they will all produce fruit of such similar size that it will be difficult to know whether individual fruits are larger due to environmental effects rather than genetic differences. And also I am preparing myself for the reality that a single bush may exhibit as much variation in fruit size as I might find between different bushes. But I have to start somewhere. Potentially I need to scout around the province a little, looking for likely candidates in the wild populations as well. Maybe I'm thinking about this all wrong, and I should select for something else and cross my fingers that pleitropy will take care of the fruit size?

 

From this....                                 to this!

There are some clever things happening with New Zealand plants these days being used in the food and beverages markets. ETA started marketing a balsamic vinaigrette last year enhanced with the wonderful native horopito, or peppertree (Pseudowintera colorata). It has a subtle peppery flavour - quite delightful.
Waituna ale uses kawakawa leaves in it's brewing process http://www.waitunabrewing.com/Gallery/gallery.html and I recently became aware of a new startup company called Wai kawa, who make mixers like tonic water with kawakawa (Macropiper excelsum), and a cola with horopito http://www.wai-kawa.co.nz/

Bitters are supposed to be jolly good for us - and we don't get enough of them in our diet. I have yet to determine whether poroporo jam is a good substitute for marmalade on toast in the morning.

Horopito leaves - gorgeous colours

Kawakawa leaves